Lately I've been struggling with a proper attitude towards my "pouring out" activities. I'm tired and burnt out, and I usually end up doing things with the thought in the back of my mind of "I could be doing homework right now... I could be doing laundry right now... I could be studying for a CLEP test right now." Which takes my focus off of what I'm doing and why I'm doing it.
What's my problem? Well, it's a funny thing. If you stop spending time with God, you stop liking His stuff. It becomes a chore that you do because responsibility is your top trait and you can't back out of something without a really good excuse (like, getting hit by a Mac truck and being hospitalized for a month might count. Not much else). True story. So, beginning yesterday, I'm getting up at 6:15 every morning and spending some quality quiet time with God before I go running. If I don't do it then, it's too easy to skip. God doesn't give out GPAs. Professors do. So God can wait. FALSE!
That's where the quality versus quantity comes in. I like to be busy and juggling things. It makes me feel like I have a purpose, and I get a natural high off of the challenge of getting everything to fit and get accomplished. But is that how I should be approaching things? Proly not (proly is a word for lazy people. It is not quality. Don't use it). Lately I've been frustrated with AWANA, and I couldn't figure out why, aside from the fact that it was a "God" thing and we weren't spending much time together. I've realized recently that it's probably because I usually have 15 or more kindergarten girls in a room for 30 minutes, sometimes without help. I have to make sure they all have the chance to say their verses, get their candy, not pull each others' hair, not leave the room unless I tell them they can, make sure they come BACK from the bathroom, and try to leave the room in decent order for the next group. With all that, I don't have the chance to talk with them about what their verses mean. They can spit them out like crazy, but they have no idea what they are saying. Dealing with a group of this size almost forces quantity on me, and makes quality nearly impossible to obtain. How to change that, I don't know. Rope a few more volunteers, maybe.
Quality versus quantity should apply to every area of my life. Should I sign up for more because I think I have the time? Or should I do what I'm already committed to with deep quality? Depth over breadth might not always be the best choice in retail assortment, but in real life, it's probably the best choice. Like maybe try for something better than Cs in a freshman level class (haha yeah. Stinkin' senioritis)? Pay attention to detail on that one poster instead of pounding out three in the same time frame? Spend more time listening to God instead of spouting off an "I need" list and reading a chapter so I can check it off my 'to do' list?
Quality over quantity.
Depth above breadth.
"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." Colossians 3:23-24
PS- I was supposed to be writing a reading reflection right now. Do as I say, not as I do....
What's my problem? Well, it's a funny thing. If you stop spending time with God, you stop liking His stuff. It becomes a chore that you do because responsibility is your top trait and you can't back out of something without a really good excuse (like, getting hit by a Mac truck and being hospitalized for a month might count. Not much else). True story. So, beginning yesterday, I'm getting up at 6:15 every morning and spending some quality quiet time with God before I go running. If I don't do it then, it's too easy to skip. God doesn't give out GPAs. Professors do. So God can wait. FALSE!
That's where the quality versus quantity comes in. I like to be busy and juggling things. It makes me feel like I have a purpose, and I get a natural high off of the challenge of getting everything to fit and get accomplished. But is that how I should be approaching things? Proly not (proly is a word for lazy people. It is not quality. Don't use it). Lately I've been frustrated with AWANA, and I couldn't figure out why, aside from the fact that it was a "God" thing and we weren't spending much time together. I've realized recently that it's probably because I usually have 15 or more kindergarten girls in a room for 30 minutes, sometimes without help. I have to make sure they all have the chance to say their verses, get their candy, not pull each others' hair, not leave the room unless I tell them they can, make sure they come BACK from the bathroom, and try to leave the room in decent order for the next group. With all that, I don't have the chance to talk with them about what their verses mean. They can spit them out like crazy, but they have no idea what they are saying. Dealing with a group of this size almost forces quantity on me, and makes quality nearly impossible to obtain. How to change that, I don't know. Rope a few more volunteers, maybe.
Quality versus quantity should apply to every area of my life. Should I sign up for more because I think I have the time? Or should I do what I'm already committed to with deep quality? Depth over breadth might not always be the best choice in retail assortment, but in real life, it's probably the best choice. Like maybe try for something better than Cs in a freshman level class (haha yeah. Stinkin' senioritis)? Pay attention to detail on that one poster instead of pounding out three in the same time frame? Spend more time listening to God instead of spouting off an "I need" list and reading a chapter so I can check it off my 'to do' list?
Quality over quantity.
Depth above breadth.
"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." Colossians 3:23-24
PS- I was supposed to be writing a reading reflection right now. Do as I say, not as I do....
The choice is not always easy. Sometimes quantity is more practical and in reality works just fine. Other times only quality is good enough and nothing else will do. Why do we need 15 of a thing when one will do and two is really too many. Other times having a spare is handy. God grant us the wisdom to know the difference. When it comes to God His desire for us is to be real. He can handle fast and He can handle slow, but impersonal is not acceptable.
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